July 2015

Carson's cub scout group held a bottle rocket event in early July. The kids (and Dad) made bottle rockets at home then brought them to the event and they were launched high into the air. Carson's rocket went way up but did not survive the landing. Still lots of fun. His other scout activity is the color guard. Carson's cub scout pack practiced color guard twice a week all summer so they could participate in the local parade. They were at the front of the parade holding the flag and their muskets, a very handsome group! 

We attended a rodeo in mid-July and Carson wanted to try the mechanical bull - he did great!

We celebrated Daddy's birthday at the end of July. The cupcakes are shaped liked cheeseburgers, Daddy's favorite food!

The highlight of July was our camping trip to Yellowstone National Park. Here we are camping out on our deck, testing out the sleeping bags and new cots. Good thing we tried them out, everyone was cold and back inside by 3am so we decided to get warmer sleeping bags for the trip!

Our first night in Yellowstone was at Madison camp ground with this scenic river just a short walk away. What a beautiful spot!

We spent the first day driving around Yellowstone to see all the geysers. Tons of amazing geysers all over the place! Sure was crowded, tourists everywhere.

You can get a sense of the crowds in this picture. This is the gathering for Old Faithful which erupts every hour.

Carson was excited to bring his new pocket knife on the trip. It came in handy several times and he is proving that he can use it safely.

Maybe we pushed the kids a bit too much on the last hike, just had to see one more geyser before the day was up. Ice cream anyone??

Time for the campfire! Daddy fights with the tent while we get dinner started.

Great views of the falls!

Headed to Jackson, Wyoming for our last night since temperatures dropped drastically and rain/snow predicted. Stopped to get a picture by Jenny Lake en route to Jackson.

We loved Jackson, what a great town! Planning to make another trip here sometime soon.

Bear Lake was on the way home so we stopped to put our feet in the water and have a picnic lunch. This is the closest thing to the ocean near us in our land-locked state. Can even build a sand castle!

June 2015

We started off the summer in fine clothes for a piano recital. Our recitals are low-key and are held at the teacher's house with all of her students, about 5 total. Its a great chance for the kids to show off their wonderful piano skills in front of a small audience. They both did great. 

We tried some new camps this summer, one of which was archery. It was a hot month so the shade of the archery area was very pleasant and the kids enjoyed learning how to shoot a bow and arrow.

Our other new camp was called Scratch Camp where the kids learned to program in a language called Scratch. They hooked up the computer to their Lego creations, then learned to control the Lego creations using the Scratch language. They made a good team - Carson did the building and Rachel did the programming.

Our summer would not be complete without swim lessons and this year was no exception. Getting braver this year jumping off the diving board, not as much agonizing over it before taking the plunge!

One of our favorite spots in Salt Lake City is Red Butte Gardens. We get a short hike in and then the kids get to do their favorite thing - feed the ducks and fish.

  

May 2015

May was another wet month here in Utah, we certainly made up for our dry winter. The kids are getting better at biking, here is a paved track near our house where they can master their biking skills.

Rachel had Rome day at school in the third grade. Here she is in her Roman attire.

One weekend we decided to explore an area of Utah known as 9-mile canyon. We found a little cabin to stay in which had a wood stove in it, thank goodness because it was a cold and damp weekend. But it was worth the trip! Driving through the canyon we had many opportunities to get out and hike around to see the petroglyphs! So much ancient artwork on the rocks and caves around here, it was amazing to see.

Rachel has been thinking about getting her ears pierced for a long time, but she was too afraid of the pain. Since she did so well at the karate tournament in May we gave her the chance to get her ears pierced afterwards and she was ready to do it! How nice that Claire's will do both ears at once so the pain is over quickly. She was very brave. BTW, Carson did great in the karate tournament too!

We headed to San Diego for Memorial Day weekend to see Veronica graduate from the University of San Diego. Great job Veronica, magna cum laude even!

We decided to visit Sea World for a day while in San Diego. We had lots of fun seeing Shamu and going on rides.

Rachel was in her first play in May, done by Up With Kids, a theater group for children. They put on Frostbite, similar to Frozen, and she had lots of fun doing the performance. 

April 2015

We had a wet spring here in Utah but we were able to get out to Red Butte Gardens to enjoy a sunny day in early April. We had a visit from Grammy and since she loves flowers and gardens we knew she would love Red Butte. The kids favorite part is feeding the fish and ducks at the small pond in the gardens.

April 2015 was a very difficult month for me, Mom. This was the month that rheumatoid arthritis set in and made my joints very painful - mostly hips, shoulders and knees. Walking became difficult and I needed 800 mg of ibuprofen per day just to get by. This is why I have gotten so behind on the family blog. As I write this entry it is now March 2016 and thank goodness I am feeling much better (and off all drugs). Hoping to get caught up and post more pictures in the next few weeks. Thanks everyone for prayers and good wishes.